B. 1. what ___ fine day! 2. what is ___ date today? 3. what ___ day is it today? 4. what ___ beautiful weather we are having today! 5. what ___ warm welcome they showed. 6. look, what ___ lovely present i've received. 7. what's ___ news?

Below are the correct articles for each sentence along with brief grammatical explanations for why they are used. Exercise Solutions

1. What a fine day!
2. What is the date today?
3. What (no article) day is it today?
4. What (no article) beautiful weather we are having today!
5. What a warm welcome they showed.
6. Look, what a lovely present I've received.
7. What's the news?

Detailed Explanations

• Sentence 1, 5, & 6 (Exclamations with Countable Nouns):
  In exclamatory sentences starting with "What," we use the indefinite article a/an if the noun is singular and countable (day, welcome, present).
  • Formula: What + a/an + (adjective) + singular countable noun.
• Sentence 2 (Specific Information):
  We use the because there is only one specific date for today. It is a definite, unique reference.
• Sentence 3 (Interrogative Adjective):
  When "What" is used as an interrogative adjective followed directly by a noun to ask for specific information (like the day of the week), no article is used between them.
• Sentence 4 (Uncountable Nouns):
  "Weather" is an uncountable noun. In exclamatory "What" sentences, we do not use "a/an" with uncountable nouns or plural nouns.
  • Formula: What + (adjective) + uncountable noun.
• Sentence 7 (Fixed Expressions/Definite Reference):
  "What's the news?" is a common idiomatic inquiry. Even though "news" is uncountable, we use the definite article because we are asking about specific current events or the latest updates.

Would you like me to provide more practice sentences focusing on the difference between "What" and "How" in exclamations?